When engaged in a point-of-sale (POS) transaction, a consumer typically has the opportunity to review information regarding the goods and/or services being purchased on a video display as the products are scanned. The information provided to the consumer may include the name of the product being purchased, the quantity being purchased, the price of the product, discounts applied to the price of the product and other information. In some configurations, the video display is shared by both the cashier and the consumer, and the screen is turned so that both cashier and consumer may view the display. Typically the cashier is behind a counter opposite the consumer. In such a configuration, creating an unobstructed line of sight to the video display for both the cashier and the consumer may prove difficult. In other configurations, a separate video display is provided for both the cashier and the consumer. However, viewing the video display may be difficult or impossible for many consumers, such as consumers with visual impairment. Additionally, use of the video display may be difficult for consumers that are distracted, such as consumers having children. Various other consumers may simply prefer not to read the information provided on the video display.
Furthermore, some consumers, including the visually impaired, may find use of a traditional payment terminal difficult or impossible. For example, payment terminals from one store to the next often look different and have different configurations of user input and output devices. Many consumers must take additional time to find the correct buttons or other input devices on the particular payment terminal and, as a result, check out is slowed. The payment terminals also rarely utilize Braille or other communication systems suited for the visually impaired making it especially difficult for the visually impaired to enter input into the payment terminal.
Therefore, systems and methods are needed to provide alternative ways for communicating transaction information to a consumer and assisting the consumer in providing input to the payment terminal in order to more easily complete the transaction at a POS.